No job? No problem. How to move to Australia without a work visa

There are more than a few ways that you can immigrate to Australia without securing a job beforehand. While these routes are a little more complex, as you’ll see from the topics covered below, getting a valid visa isn’t an impossible task.

Join your sweetheart on a Partner visa

Outside of an Australian work permit, the Partner visa is one of the most popular visas. There are a whole bunch of ways to get this visa, but there are a few requirements you will have to meet first.

To qualify for a Partner visa, you need to be in a relationship with either an Australian citizen, an eligible New Zealand citizen or a permanent resident in Australia. There are two general categories for Partner visas: Temporary and permanent. The temporary visa is valid for two years, while the permanent will last for five years.

If your application is successful, you will be granted your temporary visa. While you’re on this visa, immigration officials will then assess whether your relationship is genuine. If you pass the test, you will be granted a permanent Partner visa.

Once you’ve held your Permanent Partner visa for four years, you can apply for citizenship. So, while having your relationship tested may seem like a chore, it’s definitely worth it.

If you’re applying for a visa falling under either subclass 309 or 100, you need to do so outside of Australia. You may not enter the country while your application is assessed.

Your application will be assessed while you’re still in your home country. You are allowed to travel to Australia on a Bridging visa while your Partner visa application is being assessed, but Bridging visa applications are complex, so it’s best to talk to a professional about your options in this regard.

Prospective Marriage visa (subclass 300)

You can think of this as a fiancé visa. It allows you to join your partner in Australia on a temporary, nine-month visa. The only catch is that you must get married in those nine months.

This visa is a great choice for people who are in a permanent relationship, but can’t show that they have cohabited for 12 months. Another awesome thing about this visa is that it comes with no work restrictions so you can look for your dream job while planning your Australian wedding.

Partner visa (subclasses 820 and 801)

Visa subclasses 820 and 801 are permanent Partner visas; because of this, you must apply for them while you’re in Australia on another valid visa.

Unfortunately, if you’re in the country on a Bridging, Criminal Justice or Enforcement visa, you can’t apply for a permanent Partner visa. You can apply for a waiver if you are on one of these three visas, but these are seldom awarded. In addition to this, if you hold a visa with condition 8503, you cannot apply for either of these visas.

You may apply for this visa if you hold a Bridging visa that allows you to live and work in the UK while your Partner visa is processed. Applications for the Partner visa can take a year or more to process.

This is a special class of visas, available to non-New Zealand partners of New Zealand citizens who are living and working in Australia. The visa is valid for five years and while it doesn’t allow you to become a permanent resident, you can renew it every five years from within Australia with relatively little fuss.

With a subclass 461 visa you can live, work and travel in (and out of) Australia while starting your new life with your Kiwi partner.

Join your children on a Parent visa

A lot of older South African citizens are interested in reuniting with their families who have moved to Australia. With thousands of young South African families having moved to Australia over the last 20 years, there are many families who currently find themselves split across the Indian Ocean.

The way it works is quite simple: The child of a parent needs to be an Australian permanent resident. This child can then sponsor their parents’ immigration. The child must have lived in Australia for two years prior to their parents’ immigration to be an eligible sponsor.

Here are three types of parent visas:

Contributory Parent Temporary visa (Subclass 173)

This temporary visa allows the parent of an Australian permanent resident, citizen or eligible New Zealand citizen to live in Australia for two years.

You can’t extend this visa and, if you wish to continue living in Australia with your family, you will have to apply for the Contributory Parent visa (Subclass 143).

To be eligible for this visa, you must:

Currently live outside of Australia

Be the parent of a child (natural, adopted or stepchild) who is a settled Australian citizen, settled permanent resident or settled eligible New Zealand citizen

Be able to pay the high contributory amounts, which are split into two separate payments under the 173 and 143 applications

Contributory Parent Migrant visa (Subclass 143)

To be eligible for this visa, you will need an assuror of support. This person is usually your child and they must be prepared to financially support you for 10 years. Your assuror will also have to put up a bond of AUD 10,000 to ensure you are not a financial burden on the state. This amount will be returned to the assuror after 10 years.

The application fees for this visa are also extremely high, but what you get in return is your visa processed in 15-18 months. As you’ll see below, this is quite different from the Parent Migrant visa which has extraordinarily long processing times.

Anyone applying for this visa must:

Be the parent of a child (natural, adopted or stepchild) who is a settled Australian citizen, settled permanent resident or settled eligible New Zealand citizen

Have at least half of their children permanently residing in Australia

Have more children living permanently in Australia than any other country

Be able to pay the high contributory amounts

Parent Migrant visa (Subclass 103)

There’s a limit on the number of visas issued in this category; this means that there’s quite a daunting waiting time of 20 years. The benefit is that you aren’t required to pay the large sums of money that the Contributory Parent visa demands.

As with the other Parent visas, your sponsor and assuror of support must be able to show that they can support you and that you won’t be a burden to the state.

Social security payments to you will have to be reimbursed by your sponsor. The assuror of support will, as with other parent visas, have to lodge a bond of AUD 10,000 and a further AUD 4,000 for each additional adult family member. This bond will be reimbursed after 10 years.

To get your hands on this visa, you must:

Be the parent of a child – naturally or by law – who is a settled Australian citizen, settled permanent resident or settled eligible New Zealand citizen

Have at least half of your children permanently residing in Australia

Have more children living permanently in Australia than any other country

Each Parent visa has barriers to entry, but with the help of registered migration agents you can ensure your, or your parents’, best chance of success.

Find your own route to Australia

Whether via a Skilled Worker visa or a Parent visa, there are loads of ways for South Africans to immigrate to Australia. One of our registered migration experts, from our Melbourne office, Sam Hopwood, will be in Cape Town and Johannesburg at the beginning of November to give free seminars on how you can move yourself and your family Down Under.